Reparations
by KellyKatt19
Summary: Harry, Ron and Hermione are returning to Hogwarts as eighth years - as are all the other survivors of their year group. Things will be difficult for everyone, but drama is always preferable to danger, and the trio will be there to do what they do best; fix it. A story of friendships new and old, family ties, and the bonds that form as a result of war. OCs, AU & OOC-ness. HIATUS
1. Chapter 1

**AN: My first multi-chapter Harry Potter fic, so be nice please. I know OCs are dangerous territory, but I'm going to try my best. She also won't be the only focus of this fic - I could never write for a fandom without having some focus on the original protagonist. There will be more than one OC, and I hope I can find the right balance between my characters and Rowling's. I hope you enjoy, and let me know if there're things I could improve or include.**

 **Disclaimer: I do not own any part of the Harry Potter franchise, nor the plot and characters created by J.K. Rowling. (Apply to every chapter, because I'm not writing it every single time).**

* * *

"Katarina! Katarina hurry up, we're going to miss the train!"

Theodore's voice drifted up the stairs, ringing with impatience. Katarina Nott, fourteen year old witch and fourth year student at Hogwarts, smiled as she heard her big brother shouting at her. She knew that some people would find it odd that she enjoyed being yelled at, but she was still basking in the luxury of being able to yell at each other at all.

"I'm coming, Theo! I'll be down in a minute!"

Katarina was so excited. She was going back to Hogwarts! Theo was going back with her! She felt like she would explode with happiness. She knew she'd have to cool it before they reached the platform, but for now, in the safety of her own home, Katarina was free to show as much emotion as she liked. Especially now that she was in no danger from her pig of a father, may he rot away in Azkaban for the rest of eternity.

"Ready? Let's go!" Katarina flashed another smile at her reflection, and bounded away down the hall and down the staircase. "I'm ready, Theodore."

Her big brother looked down at her, fond exasperation covering his face and laughter shining in his brown eyes. "What took you so long? I know you can't have been packing, you nearly had a panic attack last night because you couldn't find one last book."

Katarina pouted at being laughed at – taking advantage of the emotional freedom – before she gave up and giggled, poking her tongue out. "I was doing my hair."

The eighteen year old boy just sighed and gave a rueful smile. "I should have known. It looks lovely, sister."

"Why thank you, brother. Shall we depart?"

"We shall." And with that, Katarina took Theodore's offered elbow, taking one last glance around the manor before they were whisked away with a loud _crack!_

* * *

"Theodore! Katarina! Come, join us in our compartment."

Katarina couldn't quite contain the small quirk of her lips as Pansy Parkinson ushered the siblings into her compartment. That girl was so…. So. There was no one quite like Pansy. Sitting down in the seat offered to her by the enthusiastic Slytherin girl, Katarina looked around to see who else was there already. Draco Malfoy, of course, Pansy would never be separated from him. Blaise Zabini, Daphne Greengrass and her sister Astoria, Tracey Davis, her younger brothers Aston and Ethyn, and Millicent Bullstrode. It looked like most of her brother's Slytherin year mates, except for Crabbe and Goyle. One dead, and the other gone who knows where. Katarina shivered and forced her mind away from the subject.

"So what do you think, Katarina?" Ethyn Davis's voice broke into her thoughts.

"Pardon? Apologies, I wasn't paying attention." She smiled politely at her year mate.

He grinned back, utterly careless. How lucky for him. "I was just asking if you agreed that the teachers will be working everybody except the firsties harder than ever, to make up for last year."

She let a small grimace cross her features. "I do. We're all going to have to make up for lost time. Put a lot more effort into keeping up."

Tracey, the eldest Davis child, cut in. "Don't worry about it so much. I know our new Head Boy and Girl will be doing a lot to help everyone out this year, they won't be able to help themselves."

At this, most heads in the compartment turned her way. "How do you know who the new Head students are? Who are they?" Daphne demanded.

Tracey smirked. "It's completely obvious once you know. I just happened to overhear a conversation in Diagon Alley during the summer."

Katarina could feel the curiosity levels rising. Obvious…. Who would be the most obvious choice… Oh! Oh, it couldn't be! But if it was-

"It's Potter and Granger."

Silence filled the air. It _was_ rather obvious, but then again, nobody knew if the Golden Boy, the Saviour, would even return to Hogwarts this year. Katarina could barely keep the smile off her face – Harry and Hermione were the Heads! They so deserved it, and oh, Hogwarts under their care, it would be amazing!

Instead, she chose to smirk at the facial expressions of the older students. Pansy and Millicent were both scowling, probably more about Hermione than Harry, Katarina thought. Draco was looking rather stupefied; everybody knew that _the_ Harry Potter had spoken for the young Malfoy during his trial, and his mother as well. The others all had thoughtful looks on their faces, bar Tracey, who had the biggest, smuggest smile Katarina had ever seen. She seemed to be quite pleased with herself for provoking this reaction.

"We really should have known, shouldn't we?" Daphne finally broke the silence, a rueful look on her pretty face. "Granger would of course be going back to finish her schooling, and Potter and Weasley would never leave her alone for an entire year."

Everybody nodded in agreement. Honestly, it was common sense. The whole student population knew about the 'Golden Trio' and their bond. Katarina, having known the three since her first year, was well aware of just how much they meant to each other. She loved seeing them all together; something about the picture they made just filled her chest with happiness.

Blaise was the next to speak. "We need to be extra careful about how we are seen. Without those two in positions of authority, we had to be careful about what we said. Now, you just know that they'll be keeping an eye on Slytherin house, and us in particular. We will need to control ourselves."

This with a pointed look at Pansy and Draco. Everybody was well aware that the two older students were the ones who needed to keep themselves in check. They were the prominent Slytherin figures in their year, and they held the most enmity towards the two Gryffindors. Their rivalry was almost legendary in Hogwarts.

Draco just nodded, his face a little pale. Katarina thought he was probably planning to just avoid Harry all together. Pansy scrunched up her face, but the fourth year knew she'd go along with the others. She had lost a lot of her status as top female during the past few months, just like Draco had lost almost all of his. They'd play nice if it killed them.

* * *

Later on that evening, sitting in the Great Hall, Katarina couldn't help but compare the atmosphere to the previous two years. It had been so _tense_ ; the fear running through the student body had almost been palpable. Now, the air was clear. It was quite somber, but the students all seemed to be chattering away to each other, faces free of the stark terror of last year. Katarina herself felt so unbelievably relieved. Thank Merlin for Harry and his friends. She had no doubt that had she had to live under the Death Eaters rule for much longer, she would have broken. She would have gone mad, or ran away, or joined the rebel group, or gotten herself killed, but she would not have been able to go on for much longer.

Speaking of Harry…. Katarina's head involuntarily turned towards the Gryffindor table. It wasn't hard to spot her black haired friend, surrounded as he was. The familiar Weasley red hair was visible to either side of him, separated only by Hermione's bushy brown hair and Longbottom's dark brown hair. She smiled inwardly to herself. Without his friends fending off his admirers, Harry would have been mobbed by now. She still remembered the first time she'd met him, the famous Harry Potter.

* * *

 _Katarina was lost. Hopelessly lost, as a matter of fact. It was the first weekend of the school year, and she'd taken the chance to explore the old castle where she'd be spending the next seven years of her life. Only, the staircases kept shifting, doors kept disappearing, and there were no portraits to point the way! The eleven year old slumped to the floor, eyes stinging. How she wished that the teachers hadn't piled the homework onto the fifth years! She wanted Theo, warm, comforting Theo, who had looked after her for her whole life._

 _Suddenly, Katarina could hear voices coming towards her. She'd barely had time to think about maybe hiding before three people had walked around the corner and spotted her. Katarina nearly had a heart attack. Of all people, she'd been found by Potter and his friends. She buried her face in her drawn up knees and hoped the fifth years would just walk right past her. Her dorm mate, Isobel King, had an older sister in fifth year and in Gryffindor. Isobel said her sister had told her all about Potter's hatred of Slytherin students. And of course, Theodore had told her of the Potter-Malfoy rivalry._

 _Katarina tensed. The footsteps had stopped. She'd been so deep in her thoughts; the sound of feet had disappeared. Maybe they'd just ignored her? Sweet Merlin, she prayed they had just continued on their way. Cautiously, Katarina lifted her head – and found herself face to face with the Boy-Who-Lived. She sucked in a breath, and flinched back before she could help it. Concerned green eyes watched her._

" _Hello? Are you okay? What's your name?"_

 _No, no, no, this wasn't happening. What would Theo say if he knew she'd talked to Harry Potter? He wouldn't. She would get herself out of this, and Theodore would never have to know. According to rumor, Potter didn't like the Slytherins, and he didn't like lies. The Sorting Hat had told her she had some Gryffindor spirit in her – time to see if it was true._

 _She lifted her head, tears still gathered in her eyes. "I'm Katarina," no last name, he might recognize it. "And I'm lost."_

 _There was a chuckle from behind Potter. Katarina had almost forgotten his two friends were there. "Ronald!" The girl spoke, and the sound of a slap._

 _Katarina almost giggled, but she managed to hold it. The effort was made pointless though, when Potter rolled his eyes and grinned at her. Giggles spilled from her mouth, and it sounded like he was laughing too. Her tension eased. He wouldn't hurt her. Anybody with a laugh like that, and an open expression like his, couldn't be so bad._

" _Well Katarina, I'm Harry, and these two are Ron and Hermione." Mirth still danced in his eyes, and she had to smile._

 _She lifted her head up and looked at the other two. The girl, Hermione, was currently smirking at the scowling redhead, Ron, obviously a Weasley. Harry cleared his throat noisily and both of their heads snapped around. A light blush crept up their faces, and Katarina couldn't help the giggles escaping again. They blushed some more and waved sheepishly. She waved back._

" _So, uh, lost huh? I remember getting lost every day for our whole first week, right Harry?" Ron said with a grin._

 _It was Harry's turn to flush. "Couldn't even find the Great Hall," he confirmed. "Were you trying to get somewhere, or just exploring, sweetheart?"_

 _Katarina started a bit at the pet name. Nobody had called her by anything other than her given name, ever since her mother died six years ago. Not even Theodore. It felt nice._

" _I was just exploring. My brother was supposed to show me around, but then he got more homework than he expected, so I just went off on my own." She sounded forlorn, even to her own ears._

" _Fifth year?" Hermione asked sympathetically._

 _Katarina nodded, hoping they wouldn't ask who he was. No such luck._

" _Who's your brother?" Ronald! Katarina wondered if this was how Hermione felt about the redhead every day. Just hit him and make him._ _Shut. Up._

 _She sighed. Best to get it over with. "His name's Theodore." Hopefully they wouldn't even know him…_

" _Theodore? Theodore Nott?" Merlin damn it all, did Hermione Granger know everything?!_

" _Nott? That Slytherin bloke?" Harry looked to his friends for confirmation._

" _Don't ask me, mate, you know I don't know any of them except for Malfoy, his pet trolls, and Parkinson. Oh, and that girl-troll, Bulstrode." Despite the tension she was feeling, Katarina had to stifle another giggle at that._

 _Hermione sighed. "Oh Ron. Hopeless, you are. Yes, Harry, the taller one."_

 _Katarina could feel herself trembling a little as Harry turned to look at her. His face was blank, and he was staring, and why wasn't he saying anything, and- He smiled._

" _You have his eyes. Come on, we'll show you around the upper levels. I reckon you don't want anybody seeing us together, yeah?"_

* * *

Katarina smiled internally as she remembered. How naïve she had been. To think she had been scared of Harry. Harry! He was such a teddy bear! He really had been lovely that day, showing her around the six and seventh floors with Ron and Hermione. He'd offered to help her whenever she needed it, and of course, to keep it a secret. She just couldn't risk it getting back to Theodore that his baby sister was hanging around with Gryffindors – and that Gryffindor in particular.

"Attention, students!" Headmistress McGonagall's voice cut through the students chatter, and clatter of cutlery. The stern woman's face seemed to soften just a smidge as she looked out over the sea of students. "I hope you have all enjoyed your dinner. Now, it is almost time for you all to head to your common rooms, but I must first make a few announcements. As always, the Forbidden Forest is _forbidden_. Be warned, I shall know if any students set foot in there. Mr. Filch has put a blanket ban on any product from Weasley's Wizard Wheezes and Zonko's joke shop. We have three new professors with us this year, Professor Taityn, who has taken over Muggle Studies, Professor Armstrong, who is taking transfiguration, and Professor Raiden, who shall be taking Defense Against the Dark Arts, as well as head of Gryffindor." She paused for the applause to die down. "Now, I know last year was hard on everybody, and we have all changed, in one way or another. I would like for everyone to remember that at Hogwarts, we are family. If you feel the need to talk with somebody, know that our prefects, head students and professors are always available, as are your friends. I would like for us to bow our heads for a moment of silence, to remember those that have fallen, who should be here with us in this moment. To respect those who gave their lives, so that we may live ours."

Katarina bowed her head, mourning the waste of life that took place just a few short months ago. Too many gone, forever. The minute passed quickly, and as everybody raised their heads, the air seemed to be filled with somber grief.

McGonagall cleared her throat, the sadness clear upon her face. "Their sacrifice will not be in vain. We will all strive to live our lives in a way that would make our missing loved ones proud. Would the returning eighth years please remain behind a moment? Prefects, show your houses to your common rooms. Dismissed."

Katarina pouted a bit at that, but dutifully waved goodnight to Theodore and followed Isobel and Ethyn down into the dungeons.

* * *

 **AN: Let me know how I did? I actually only just found this in my files, I wrote it almost two years ago, and I still have my notes and everything. I'll probs upload all the chapters I still have, just to get it out there, so I didn't waste my sixteen year old time :L.**

 **\- Kelly**


	2. Chapter 2

**AN: Chapter two! Another two year old chapter, even if apparently nobody is interested :LLLLL.**

* * *

Theodore sighed as he glanced around the Great Hall. There weren't many faces missing from the eighth years, but there were enough to be felt, even if they were not all dead. Crabbe, of course. Goyle had gone into hiding. One Ravenclaw boy, two girls. Two Hufflepuff boys, two more girls. No Gryffindor's. That stung a little. Their entire year group made it through alive. Ten of the most reckless, brash students in the whole school, made it to the end of the war.

He switched his attention to the Headmistress, who had moved off of the dais the professor's table was on. She gestured for the whole group to get up and follow her as she left the Hall. Theodore wondered what she wanted with them, and when he'd get to go to bed. It was draining, being back here.

"I'm sure most of you are confused, but you shall see in just a moment. Unfortunately, there are only enough dorm rooms for seven years of students. The magic that ensures a bed for each student is limited, and Hogwarts has never hosted such a large amount of students staying an extra year. So we have had to find alternate living quarters for you all. Of course, you will still be allowed access to your House common room, but you will be staying in rooms along… Here."

They were up to the fourth floor by then, and Theodore was feeling quite morose. There would be no return to the comfort of his old bed, no more staying up late in the Slytherin common room. Could his mood get any worse?

"Now, I'm afraid that there are few spaces readily available for such a large group of people to be living in, and we agreed that you lot would need to stick close together. No need to have eight different common rooms spread out across the castle when we could have five. So this," here, she pointed to a suit of armor standing in an alcove. "Is the entrance to your common room. Give him the password and he will let you in. You may let friends from the younger years in, but they are not to stay the night. Password is ' _Concordia_.' Inside, there are entrances to two smaller common rooms. One is for the Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw students, your dorm rooms are to be found inside. The other is for the Gryffindor and Slytherin students. Does everybody understand?"

Yes. His mood could indeed get worse. He would be sharing living space with _them?_ He could take living with anybody else, but not those Merlin-be-damned Gryffindors. He would become a bitter, twisted mockery of a man if he had to face them every day, see the judgment on their faces. The righteous anger of the wronged.

"Professor, is this the only way to get into the smaller common rooms? And are there passwords for the entrances in this common room?"

"Excellent questions, Miss Granger. No, this is not the only way to enter the smaller rooms. Further down the corridor, there is a painting of two tigers. This is the alternate entrance to the Hufflepuff/Ravenclaw common room. Password is ' _Gratiam.'_ You may change it if you do not feel comfortable with the other Houses knowing. Back down that end, is a painting of two children in a forest. This, obviously, is the Slytherin/Gryffindor entrance. Password is ' _Secundum.'_ These passwords will also be needed to go through the inner entrances. Doorway to the left is the Hufflepuff/Ravenclaw common room, doorway to the right is for the Slytherin/Gryffindor common room. Now, apologies for keeping you so long from your rest. Goodnight."

"Goodnight, Professor."

* * *

The eighth years all stood there awkwardly for a moment, before Granger sighed and pushed through until she reached the suit of armor. " _Concordia._ "

The armor moved one his hands back (it looked to Theodore as though he were pressing one of the stones behind him), and a section of wall next to his alcove melted away, rather like Diagon Alley. He was impressed despite himself. It was a good place to hide living quarters, nobody would think anything was out of place. He did wonder how they would be able to get out though. Would it be like his old common room? Or would they have to repeat the password to get out?

Distractedly, he noticed the others were all following Potter, Granger and Weasley through the portal and down the few stairs into the common room. He stepped through with Tracey, leaving Draco and Pansy to collect themselves behind him. He held no envy for those two, nor sympathy. It had been their choice to continue to antagonize the Gryffindor trio over the years, and now they would have to face up to the consequences.

His train of thought was interrupted when he saw the inside of the eighth year common room. "Granger," because Theodore had a feeling she'd been in here previously. " _Why_ are our walls _purple_?"

There were snickers from several boys, Potter and Weasley the loudest. Granger just looked exasperated. "The house elves didn't know what to do about color, without using our House colors. They couldn't find a way to match them all up either, so they just used different ones."

Potter and Weasley burst out laughing at this, and Granger scowled. "These two idiots helped, of course. You wouldn't _believe_ the color schemes they came up with!" She sounded a little scandalized. Of course, knowing those two, the muggle-born girl could well be traumatized by overexposure to them and their oh-so _brilliant_ ideas.

"Was this where you three disappeared to then, Hermione? Those last two weeks of restoration?"

That question, coming from the Bones girl, was uttered right as Draco and Pansy stepped through the entry-way. Awkward tension settled in the air. Draco had frozen just inside and was staring straight ahead, avoided everybody's gaze. Pansy was determinedly clinging to his arm, glaring at anybody who would meet her eyes. Theodore sighed, about to intervene, when – who else – the Savior stepped in.

"It's about time you two joined us in here. Shut the door, will ya?" Potter's annoyingly cheerful voice seemed to be enough for the other students to cool down. If the Golden Boy was going to act like everything was fine, then so would they. Theodore hated to admit it, but he was glad Potter was there. He wasn't so sure if the Slytherin students would have been able to protect themselves, much less each other, from the other three Houses. Even though not all of them had been Death Eaters, (only three of them had been, actually), none of them had fought during the battle either. And he knew that none of the Slytherins in his year had helped during the restoration of Hogwarts. Things were bound to be tense until the situation was settled – one way or another.

"And yes, Susan, we were in here. McGonagall pretty much let us have free reign over decoration – so I decided we needed Luna's expertise." This statement was accompanied with a cheeky grin, and effectively distracted the eighth years, if their gaping was any indication.

"Oh Harry! You let _Luna_ loose in here?"

"Lovegood did this?!"

"What on Earth possessed you to give Luna Lovegood free reign over our common room?"

Theodore listened to the clamor that had risen up with Potter's words. The approving looks Weasley and Granger sent him, and the wink he shot back, convinced him that this was what he had intended. The young Lord was reluctantly impressed. Who knew that Harry Potter, the consummate Gryffindor, had a Slytherin streak?

A thought occurred to him then. Why was Potter shielding Malfoy? Merlin only knew how much those two loathed each other. What was his game? What could possibly be in it for Potter? His saintly image? No, Theodore knew Potter had never put much stock in his fame. Having Malfoy indebted to him? He already had that, after saving him and Narcissa from Azkaban. Maybe he was just reaffirming that fact with Malfoy. Making sure that the blond idiot knew who was in charge. Except…. That wasn't Potter. It didn't fit his whole martyr image.

That line of thinking was frustrating Theodore to no end, so he put it in the back of his head to ponder later. He tuned back in just in time for Potter to reenter the conversation. Lovely.

"Hey, come on guys! Leave Luna alone. Besides, she did a great job didn't she?"

Theodore had to admit, it was more understated than anything he'd expect from Loony Lovegood. The walls were a very light shade of purple, (he'd be damned if he ever learned the name of that shade), and covered with a pattern of some sort, painted white. He could not make heads nor tails of the pattern, with all its spirals and curves, but admittedly, the overall effect was quite soothing. The carpet beneath his feet was slate grey, thick and soft. It was a few shades darker than the furniture, which was more of a dove grey, he thought, and which also looked very comfortable. There was a huge fireplace made of white marble on the back wall, opposite the entrance. Vaguely he wondered where the marble had come from. All of the tables set out around the room, and the shelving on either side of the fireplace were made from the same dark wood as the two doors that probably lead to the smaller common rooms. All in all, Theodore thought it was quite pleasant.

Judging by the murmurs he could hear from his year mates, they obviously agreed. Some of them looked as though they had been stunned upright. He wasn't the only one surprised by Lovegood's apparent skill at interior decoration then.

Potter smirked at them. "Luna designed the entire eighth year suite, along with the elves. You can thank her tomorrow."

Granger sighed and poked him in the side, causing him to yelp. She gave him a look, and then stepped forward. "We, as in Harry and I, wanted to talk to all of you together, but I think we're all too tired to have this discussion right now. Could everybody please meet up in here at six-thirty tomorrow morning? The meeting shouldn't be longer than half an hour and then we can all go to breakfast."

There was some grumbling, but everybody gave nods of assent. Granger smiled at them, before shooing the 'Claws and the 'Puffs towards their door. "Goodnight then! Get a good sleep, we'll need you alert in the morning!"

"Merlin, she's a mother hen," Tracey muttered to Theodore as they joined the group being herded by Potter towards the other door. "I hope she's not like this all the time."

Theodore gave a low laugh in agreement. He was slightly tense, having just noticed that they Slytherins and Gryffindors were no longer separate. The two groups had merged going through to their shared common room, and he had no idea what would happen when the volatile lions had the snakes at their mercy.

His worries were unfounded, however. As soon as Potter, who was last in, closed the door behind him, he walked over to the staircase that Theodore presumed led to the boys dormitories, with a sleepy, "Night all!" tossed over his shoulder. And like ducklings, the other Gryffindor boys followed him, as the girls followed Granger.

Theodore's shoulders loosened, but only a little. They still had to go upstairs to get to their beds. There could still be a confrontation. It was looking unlikely now, but there was still a chance of the Gryffs jumping them. He could probably defend himself, as could the other two, but not against all five at once. The other Slytherin's looked like they were having similar thoughts, until Daphne tossed back her head.

" _I. Am. Exhausted._ I am going upstairs, and I am going to put a proximity charm around my bed, and then I am going to get in and go to sleep. They are Gryffindors. They are rash, and impulsive, and the most temperamental people on _Earth_ , but more importantly, they are _Potter's_ Gryffindors. That means that they are idiotically noble, and they will not attack us tonight. Or any other night, unless we give them a reason to. So I suggest you all follow my lead, and get some sleep before Granger's big meeting tomorrow morning."

And with that, she walked, quite calmly, up the stairs to the girls' dorm. Uncharacteristically sharing a few nervous looks, Pansy, Tracey and Millicent followed the blonde-haired girl up the staircase. Without a word or a look at their common room, the three boys followed their example and climbed up to their own dorm.

* * *

Theodore could not get to sleep. He lay in his four-poster bed, eyes wide and staring into the semi-dark of the dorm room, ears straining for any hint of a surprise ambush. It was difficult though, because great Merlin, could those Gryffindors snore. He supposed that he was being rather paranoid – not a good state to be in – but he was a naturally cautious person, and being surrounded by the 'enemy' was taking a toll on his nerves.

A whispering sound caught his attention, and he almost stopped breathing. He lay still, trying to catch any sound that would give him a clue as to what was going on. Hushed voices started up a minute later.

"Move yours, or enlarge mine?"

What on… Theodore could not make that sentence make any sort of sense, so he listened carefully for the answer.

"Hmm, enlarge yours, I think. Moving mine will make too much noise."

That was Potter! He would know that voice anywhere. The other was most likely Weasley then.

"Now, or should we wait?"

"I'll do it."

Theodore heard Potter whisper an enlargement charm, and then sheets rustling. Suddenly, it all clicked. They were talking about the beds. Potter and Weasley had just made one of their beds bigger, presumably to fit the both of them. Well this was unexpected. The hero and his hothead sidekick were sharing a bed, in secret, if the waiting and the whispering were anything to go by. What, however, had Weasley meant when he'd asked about waiting?

His answer came barely a minute after he'd had the thought. The dorm room door slowly opened, and a figure slipped inside before gently closing it. In the dim lighting, Theodore caught sight of a head of bushy hair and blinked in realization. Granger. Weasley was asking if they should wait for their know-it-all friend to cast the charm. He watched as the girl crawled onto the magically enlarged bed and situated herself in between the two boys. How interesting. The Golden Trio all slept together in the same bed. It had been going on for a while, judging by the ease with which the three arranged themselves around each other.

Theodore wondered if they were in a polygamous relationship. There had been rumours that the Golden Trio were in fact in love with each other, but Theodore had always disregarded those as silly. He had been a part of the group that thought Weasley and Granger would get together romantically, and Potter was just ridiculously affectionate. Now though, he wasn't so sure.

He was still pondering this as he fell asleep.


	3. Chapter 3

**AN: So there is some interest in this after all! Thanks everybody who followed/reviewed :). Not gonna lie, there will be quite a bit of focus on my little OCs, according to my old plot notes, but I think I can work in some more stuff to do with the original HP cast.**

* * *

"Katarina, hurry up! I want to get to breakfast early!"

This was becoming a habit, Katarina mused as she finished brushing out her hair. Maybe she ought to be getting up earlier. Then again, she wouldn't have to get up early if people didn't feel the need to arrive places early. Really, they were the ones causing the issues.

"I'm done, Isobel," she called out as she put down her brush and stood up from her place on her bed. "Well, are you coming or not? I want to get to breakfast early!" Katarina said mockingly as she swept past her friend and towards the common room. She thought she heard Isobel growl, causing a small smirk to cross her face.

Katarina just widened her eyes innocently when Isobel shot her a glare. The other girl had too sweet a face to look scary – something Isobel took great delight in proving to be deceptive. She was a perfect example of that saying Hermione had taught her, 'don't judge a book by its cover.' Big blue eyes, curly gold hair, a dainty nose, and dimples in cheeks still holding on to baby fat. Katarina knew though, that the youngest King child had a mean streak a mile wide, and the manipulative skill to cover it. It was the reason she was put in Slytherin rather than Gryffindor with her sister or Ravenclaw with her brother. Hufflepuff had probably never been an option.

She dropped the innocent eyes when Isobel continued to glare, and smile angelically. "Why do you want to be at breakfast early, then?"

Isobel rolled her eyes. "I need to talk to Tarren. She was going to give me copies of all her notes from her third and fourth year. I want to get a start on studying for last year's exams, and keep up with the fourth year workload."

"I wonder when they will be holding those? Only the fifth, sixth, and seventh years took them, right?"

Her friend nodded in confirmation. "Only the upper years took them because they needed the results to get into their classes. Tarren and Kendrick were studying like mad to prepare themselves."

"Theodore too. I wonder why they didn't just hold the exams for all the years though?" Not that Katarina was complaining. It gave her more time to read and retain any information she would need for the third year exams. She couldn't remember half of what she'd learned last year. Most of it was a haze of fear and worry.

Isobel scoffed. "I doubt we were too high up the list of 'Important Things to Take Care Of', Katarina. Most of the students in the lower years were too scared to learn last year, and the Ministry couldn't hold them, what with Shacklebolt doing that massive sweep of Ministry employees. Hogwarts was being put back together; McGonagall was busy learning how to be Headmistress. They barely had time to organize, and mark the upper years' papers."

Katarina had barely acknowledged Isobel's words when they reached the Great Hall. Scanning the tables, Katarina could find no sign of Theodore; nor any other of the eighth years. She didn't know if he had been to the Slytherin common room last night, she hadn't waited up. A knot began to form in her stomach. Where could they all be?

She walked with Isobel to the empty seats next to Ethyn Davis, refusing to allow any of her anxiety to show on her face or her body. Especially not with so many people watching. Had the Slytherin table received this many odd looks last night? They weren't exactly hostile, but they definitely were not friendly. Katarina couldn't recall for sure, but she thought it had been relatively normal at the opening feast. Ugly looks thrown at specific individuals, general mistrust aimed at the table, but none of the malicious, judgmental looks she had been expecting. Though that may have something to do with the fact that the biggest terrors from last year had been removed – withdrawn, arrested, expelled… Or dead.

Katarina leaned forward to speak quietly with Grace Haizley, another of her dorm mates, who was sitting across from Ethyn. "Have any of the eighth years been in this morning?"

The other girl shook her head minutely. She raised an enquiring eyebrow, nodding her head towards Astoria and Aston, who were sitting further down the table with their own year mates.

Ethyn had caught the small gestures, and leaned forward so he could see Katarina around Isobel. "None of them have been in all morning. I asked my brother when I came in if he'd seen Tracey yet, he said no. Astoria hasn't seen Daphne yet either. Apparently they didn't come back to the common room last night."

Katarina was starting to panic now. Surely the eighth years hadn't _left_? Especially after McGonagall made Harry and Hermione the Heads.

Grace, however, opened her mouth before she could work herself up into a frenzy. "They were most likely given their own quarters."

At the inquiring, and slightly incredulous looks she was receiving, the quiet girl expanded on her explanation. "The Headmistress asked them all to stay behind last night, the Slytherins did not return to our common room, so presumably the other Houses did not either. There were still only seven dorm rooms for the girls, and even if they could integrate the three eighth year boys with the seventh years, the girl's dorm would not be able to handle holding nine people. Gryffindor House, up in their tower, could obviously not fit five girls and five boys into the dorms with the seventh years. So Professor McGonagall likely gave the entire year quarters to themselves."

Ethyn looked confused. "But some of the years have two rooms to fit all of them. Wouldn't the same thing apply now?"

Grace just gave him a cool look and went back to her breakfast. Obviously, she felt she'd already donated enough of her attention to their discussion. It was, Katarina acknowledged, a lot of words to come from the Haizley girl. Especially considering it wasn't relevant to school work.

Ethyn huffed at her, before turning and smirking at Katarina. "So what's going to happen now that your brother and Harry are – apparently – sharing quarters?"

She glared at him. Why did he have to bring that up? She would have been perfectly happy not acknowledging the awkwardness that was bound to happen. Why, in Merlin's name, had she told him about being friends with Harry Potter?

That's right, she hadn't. The little tosser had followed her, and she hadn't even noticed until Harry pointed him out. Of course, he'd not told Theo, which she was grateful for. Then again, Ethyn probably didn't want Tracey finding out that he'd made friends with the Golden Boy either. Aston knew, Isobel knew, Astoria Greengrass knew. Presumably, Grace Haizley knew, since Ethyn had said it right in front of her. She'd wanted so badly to keep it a secret, but more and more people just kept finding out. Katarina was so scared of Theo's reaction. She loved her big brother to death, he was the most important person in her life, but she was afraid that he'd make her stop being friends with Harry, Ron and Hermione. And she didn't want that.

Isobel seemed to sense her rising distress, because she the glare she shot at Ethyn was pure poison. He gulped and shifted further away from the irate blond.

"Pay no attention to that dimwit, Katarina. He is just as worried as you are, about Tracey finding out. Everything is going to be okay. I will ask Tarren to tell me if anything ever happens between Theodore and Harry, so you will know the best time to break it to him."

That was one conversation Katarina dreaded having. _'Hello brother, I just wanted to tell you that I've secretly been friends with Harry Potter for three years, and I'm only telling you now because you live with him.'_ Like that could ever end well.

Isobel scowled, as though reading her thoughts. "Stop worrying! There is no more danger to you from being associated with him, so Theodore has no valid excuse to keep you from seeing him. Unless he counts the press, but they know the consequences of dealing with us. Theodore will not allow them to harass you."

Katarina smiled despite herself. Images of Theo and Isobel facing off against hoards of reporters filled her mind. There was no doubt in who would win that particular battle. Those two together would cause mass devastation amongst the people. Nobody was unaffected by Isobel's blistering tongue and Theo's icy disdain.

"See, absolutely nothing to worry about!" Isobel said smugly. "I am always right, you know. I will not have you doubting me. And _you,_ " she said, turning to face Ethyn. " _You_ will _behave_ , unless you want Tracey and Aston finding out about your little crush on my sister."

Katarina had to stifle a laugh at Ethyn's horrified face. Whether it was at the fact that they all knew he fancied Tarren King, or at the thought of his siblings finding out, she didn't know. What she did know, was that Isobel's threat was enough to ensure that no more teasing would come her way from Ethyn, which she was grateful for.

The table had filled up as they talked, and Professor Slughorn was handing out the timetables. The Head of Slytherin stopped next to them and smiled. "Good morning Miss King, Miss Haizley, Miss Nott, Mister Davis. Here are your timetables, and don't forget to study hard for your exams! I wouldn't want four of my brightest to lose their places at the top!" That said, he chuckled and wandered further down the table.

Isobel sneered at the potion master's retreating back. "He has another thing coming if he thinks he is going to ride on my coattails when I become famous. I refuse to become a part of his collection, even if he does have the best contacts in the British wizarding world."

Ethyn raised an eyebrow. " _When_ , you become famous, Isobel? Not 'if'?"

She sniffed. "Of course when. Anything less than world-renowned is unacceptable. Of course, I am not entirely sure what it is I will be famous _for_ , yet, but it will happen."

Laughing a little at her friend's declaration, Katarina looked over her timetable for the year. Nothing too bad for the first day back. DADA first, she'd be able to see if the new Professor was any good. What was his name again? Raiden. She knew that name from somewhere. He didn't look at all familiar, but she was positive that she'd heard the name Raiden before. Maybe Theodore would know.

"There you are! Where have you all been?" She heard Isobel ask.

Katarina turned and spotted all the eighth years entering and heading towards their respective tables. She couldn't keep the relief off her face when she saw Theodore heading towards her. Maybe it was irrational to be so attached to her brother, but their father had never been a model parent, not even when their mother was still alive. Theodore had been her brother, father, and best friend for her whole life. And then the Dark Lord had returned, Theodore Nott Senior had become even more of a pig, and Katarina had been so damn scared.

She shook those thoughts out of her head. The Dark Lord was dead, her father was imprisoned in Azkaban, and Theodore was sitting right next to her. Concerned brown eyes looked back at her from Theo's thin face. She smiled at him and his eyes warmed. Theo wasn't one to show much emotion, but she knew how to read what he did show.

"So why were you late?" She questioned him.

He sighed. "Professor McGonagall gave us our own quarters. Granger wanted to meet with us all before breakfast, and we talked longer than she thought we would. Luckily, she already had our timetables on her."

"What did she want to talk about?"

He rolled his eyes. "Everything. I will give you a run down at lunch. I can show you our new common room. We have permission to let the younger years into the main room, but not the two smaller ones."

She had no idea what Theodore was talking about, but she guessed he would explain later on. She could ask about Raiden then too.

* * *

Professor Raiden, Katarina decided, should have started teaching years ago. The man was a natural. He wasn't all open and cheerful, but he smiled a lot, and he answered their questions in good humor. Katarina hoped that the rumors about the curse on the DADA position being over were true. Raiden was a great professor, and she could definitely learn from him for another four years.

Him being quite handsome had absolutely nothing to do with it.

He'd told them at the beginning of the lesson that he would probably be following the lesson plans that Professor Lupin had left behind. Meaning that the fourth years would be learning defensive spells this year. Shield charms, small protective wards, counter charms and curses. They would also be going over dark creatures again for the first few weeks, as preparation for the third year exams they still had to take.

Katarina sighed as the bell rang, signaling the end of class. She'd been enjoying her first lesson back at Hogwarts. Clearly, Isobel felt the same, if the disappointed looks she was shooting Professor Raiden were anything to go by.

Raiden laughed at the slow shuffling movements the fourth years were making as they gathered up their things. "Guys! Show some more enthusiasm, your other professors might feel unloved! I'll see you all on Friday."

Katarina pouted mentally. Professor Raiden really was a born teacher. It was a shame that they never had class with him two days in a row. Plus, she still had that little niggle in the back of her mind, telling her that she should know who this man was. It was a very frustrating feeling.

* * *

 **AN: Feedback would be appreciated! Let me know how I'm doing with the OCs - I'm quite glad that I never posted this back when I first wrote it, I get the feeling that younger-me would have made Katarina a bit Mary-Sue-ish.**

 **\- Kelly**


	4. Chapter 4

**AN: Thank y'all for reading! Here's the next chapter - incidentally, it's the last chapter I found that I had previously written, so updates will be even slower after this. Not planning on abandoning it though :).**

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Theodore looked up from his book when he heard Granger sigh.

"Harry, that's not your shirt."

"Oh I know," the other Gryffindor replied cheerfully. "It's Ron's, but I didn't realize until after I already had it on. Besides, you know the boys never mind me wearing their stuff."

Theodore watched as Potter crossed their smallish common room to sweep Granger up in a hug. Tch. Gryffindors were so tactile, it was a wonder they weren't all stuck together permanently. Especially Potter. He'd never seen another boy who felt the need to show as much physical affection as Potter did. He'd been all kisses and cuddles since halfway through their first year.

"But Harry!"

Theodore raised an eyebrow. Was Granger actually pouting?

"The new clothes we brought over the summer look so good on you!"

She was! The Gryffindor know-it-all was pouting. How odd.

"Also," she added, as though it were an afterthought. "If you were anyone else, I'd have to punch you for wearing my boyfriend's shirt."

The eavesdropping teen nearly choked, trying not to laugh out loud. Knowing she was a formidable witch was one thing. Seeing her threaten the Savior – over a boy, no less! – was another altogether.

"Ah, but Hermione, lovely, if I was anyone else, I wouldn't be _wearing_ your boyfriend's shirt, would I?"

"Damn right you wouldn't!" Weasley's voice sounded from the door to the boy's dorm. "I only share with two people, and that's you two."

The tallest member of the Golden Trio strode over to join his companions. He leaned down, and as Theodore watched, Potter and Granger both pressed a kiss to his cheek. Vastly different types of kisses, true, but still.

Those Gryffindorks, he would never understand them. The entire house seemed to have a penchant for PDA and nicknames. Dear Merlin, the nicknames. What was wrong with calling a person by their given name? Why did people feel the need to shorten other people's names? Or call them by a name that was actually an adjective. What was the point? Theodore only allowed two people to shorten his name, and one of them was dead. The other, of course, was Katarina. And even she knew that calling him 'Teddy' was taking it entirely too far. If anybody ever called him by that infernal name, he'd hex them deaf, dumb, and blind, before hanging them from the astronomy tower. Guaranteed.

"Good morning, Theodore." Daphne's cool voice broke him from his thoughts.

He inclined his head towards her, and then again when Tracey joined her. Neither girl gave any sign that anything bad had happened overnight. Of course, Daphne's face never gave anything away, and she appeared to have instilled the same thing in Tracey. It amused Theodore, how much the two girls looked alike, even with their polar opposite physical features. Their facial expressions were often identical; he suspected Daphne had given Tracey lessons on controlling what appeared on her face. He'd never proved it – nor tried to, really – but imagining those lessons taking place always provided him with entertainment. Whether they were real or not was irrelevant. Though, Tracey had changed too much throughout the course of their first year for Daphne to have not had a hand in it.

"What do you suppose Granger wants to talk to us about?"

Theodore frowned pensively at Tracey's question.

After the fruitless paranoia of the previous night, he was less sure of the actions and opinions of the other eighth years. He had been so prepared for the judgments and accusations to be thrown at the Slytherin students, that he was left feeling off-balance when nothing of the kind occurred.

He had also been surprised and confused by the secretive actions of the leading trio – Potter, Granger, and Weasley. Everybody knew by now that Weasley and Granger had gotten their act together and become a couple (which, embarrassingly even though nobody else was aware of it, he had forgotten about in his musings the previous night), so why were they all three sharing Potter's bed? If it was polygamy, as he had sleepily suspected last night, then why were they a public couple at all? Why leave one out in the metaphorical cold?

And of course, if it wasn't polygamy, it still begged the question; why were the Golden Trio sleeping in one bed together?

It was a mystery for another time. In this moment, Theodore simply shook his head lightly. "I've no clue. We will know soon enough though, it's almost time for the meeting to start."

Daphne tossed her head, long blonde hair flying backwards in a graceful motion. Theodore felt a small smile tugging at the corner of his lips. He hadn't seen the familiar gesture from the eldest Greengrass sister in more than a year; it was comforting, somewhat, to see it twice in two days. It was sign that things were going back to normal. "Theodore is right, we'll know soon enough. What _I_ want to know, is if Potter let Lovegood and the house elves loose in here as well." Her cool green eyes swept over the small Gryffindor/Slytherin common room.

Theodore could see where she made the connection. The walls were a dark, Slytherin green, with more of those swirling, spiraling patterns painted on in bright Gryffindor gold. The lush carpet was Gryffindor red, with silvery-grey furniture. There was a smaller fireplace on the wall to the right of the entrance, with a few desks and tables scattered about, and two book cases situated between two armchairs on the wall opposite to the fireplace. It definitely had a similar feel to the communal common room. Surprisingly, the green and red didn't clash at all.

Tracey chuckled. "I assume so. She's done a good job of it though. The Ravenclaw/Hufflepuff common room is probably like this one, with their house colors."

Blue and bronze, with black and yellow. Theodore didn't even try to imagine how Lovegood might have pulled that one off.

The three Slytherins didn't get a chance to discuss it further though, as more students started stumbling down the stairs, rubbing the sleep from their eyes. Draco and Blaise walked down together, talking quietly. Theodore thought that, while Blaise appeared to have relaxed somewhat overnight, Draco still held himself stiffly, sharp eyes shifting nervously. It was nothing that the painfully oblivious Gryffindors would notice, but to Theodore – and likely his other Slytherin year mates – it was clear as day. Serving the Dark Lord so closely had ruined the Malfoy heir, Theodore found himself thinking. Before the war, the blond boy had been overly arrogant and demanding, but he likely would have grown out of that eventually. Now he was just a pale, paranoid shell of himself. What an absolute waste of potential.

"Oi!" Potter's unnecessarily loud voice cut through the chatter of the collected teenagers. "If you lot are ready," he eyeballed them all sternly; making his Gryffindor friends scoff and pull faces at him. "The meeting's supposed to start soon."

Theodore sighed, placing his textbook into his bag and standing. He followed along behind Daphne and Tracey as they walked through the door to the larger common room. The Hufflepuffs and Ravenclaws were already present, seated on the comfortable looking sofas, or reading at the dark wood tables. They all looked up as Potter, Granger and Weasley led the rest of their year mates through, straightening attentively. Theodore lowered himself into the nearest seat, feeling a smirk tug at his lips as he realized that even the wooden chairs had cushioning charms on them. Living quarters for students, made by students; of course there would be those little luxuries that were absent from the normal common rooms (or at least the Slytherin one).

"Come on then, Granger," one of the Hufflepuff boys, Smith, spoke up. "What did you want to talk to us about?"

Weasley scowled at the blond, but said nothing. It was an improvement, from what Theodore could tell; the redhead had always had an abominable temper. Granger smiled up at her boyfriend, before turning to face all of the returned students. Her brown eyes clearly displayed her nerves, but she took a deep breath, seemingly gathering courage from the holds that her best friends had on her shoulders.

"I think that we were all hoping to come back to Hogwarts this year, and everything would just magically go back to normal," Granger started somberly. "But I also think that we all knew that that wasn't going to happen."

The room seemed to still; nobody was moving, and even Theodore found himself holding his breath as he waited for Granger to continue. He supposed he should have expected something along these lines, especially from Potter and Granger. Returning to school after participating in a war – against each other, no less – could never be as simple as that.

Granger looked out at her audience, and she suddenly appeared much older than her eighteen years. Theodore wondered what she could have gone through last year that would make her look so jaded; certainly most of the students who had been at Hogwarts under the Death Eaters' rule had a similar look about them. But somehow, it seemed that 'the Golden Trio' had it a little more than everybody else. Whatever they had been doing, running around England the way they had been, it had put a darkness in their eyes that was unnerving.

"We, Harry, Ron and I that is, spoke with Professor McGonagall when she first told us that she was making us Head Girl and Boy. She told us a little about how this year is going to go, in terms of catch up and such. And we also spoke about how we were going to bring the houses back together." Granger glanced pointedly at the Slytherin students, who had all grouped together around Theodore's table. Ah. So she wasn't going to skirt the issue. How Gryffindor of her, to dive right into that particular mess.

Theodore was well aware of the quick glances that the rest of his year group was sending him and his House mates. They weren't hostile or aggressive, but they definitely held some condemnation.

Granger spoke again, regaining the eighth years' attention. "We want everybody here to set an example for the younger years, and in order to do that, we need to sort ourselves out as soon as possible. We will _not_ ," and here, her voice hardened and her posture straightened, becoming tall and firm, and unrelenting. "Accept any targeting of those in Slytherin house, whether you think they deserve it or not. It is not up to any of us to dispense whatever kind of justice you are thinking of delivering." Granger gazed sternly out at the other eighth years. Theodore couldn't help but compare her to Professor McGonagall.

There were a few surprised or resigned looks, but surprisingly, Theodore saw no mutiny or anger of any sort on the faces of his fellow students. Sneaking a subtle glance at his house mates, Theodore took note of the slight shock and gratitude hidden in their eyes. All that their faces showed were blank masks though; he didn't think anyone outside of Slytherin would be able to see past those.

Just then, Potter stepped forward next to Granger, and leveled a hard glare out at the gathered teenagers. "We're going to be talking to all the students at some point, but we know that some of the younger kids might try or say something anyway. Do not react," here, Potter looked straight at Draco, who held his green gaze for but a moment before looking away. "I know how hard it is to hold your tongue when you're being accused of all sorts of shit," Understatement of the century, Theodore thought. "But you guys really need to keep cool. This time it's a little different from just stupid rumors. We just ended a _war_ , and people are still hurting and looking for somewhere to lay the blame. Unfortunately, that place is probably gonna be at your guys' feet." He shrugged unapologetically.

Daphne caught Theodore's eyes and rolled her own in exasperation. Theodore smirked back; she was undoubtedly not very impressed by the Gryffindor's indelicate handling of the situation. He had to admit to being impressed himself though; Potter appeared to have read the situation correctly (probably helped along by Granger – Merlin knew how Potter and Weasley would be able to do anything without that girl).

"Right," Granger took back the spotlight. "That was all we wanted to say on that topic. On another note, I had an idea about helping everybody study for the exams they should have taken last year, and I wanted to get all of your opinions on it."

"What is it, Hermione?" Theodore couldn't see who had spoken, but he thought it sounded like the older King sibling. She wasn't bad, for a Gryffindor; he'd heard many a story about her from Katarina, via her friend Isobel.

"Is it gonna be anything like with the DA?" The muggle-born Hufflepuff boy, Finch-Fletchley, questioned eagerly.

Ah, yes. Dumbledore's Army. Theodore thought it was a rather corny name, even if it did perfectly capture the essence of Potter and his do-gooder friends.

Potter laughed, eyes lighting up with mirth. "Kind of," he replied. "But not really." He and Weasley sniggered together behind Granger, ignoring the way her eyes narrowed at them.

"Eh?" Finch-Fletchley wasn't the only confused one. Theodore could hear a lot of confused muttering coming from the other eighth years. He himself had no idea what Potter was on about, but then again – he usually didn't.

Granger sighed in exasperation. "Ignore them," she told the students in front of her. "They have nothing useful to contribute." Theodore snorted at the wounded faces that Potter and Weasley were making behind Granger's back. Idiots. "I was _thinking_ ," Granger pressed on. "That we could form some kind of tutoring group; similar to the DA in that it would be a student teaching other students one particular subject, except this would be on a much larger scale."

"How much larger?" That was Daphne.

Granger seemed to be losing that confidence she'd had before. "Erm, well, actually…"

"Just spit it out, Hermione." Theodore heard Weasley advise her quietly.

The muggle-born girl took a deep breath, gazing out at her expectant audience. "I thought that maybe this time, we could make it school-wide."

Oh dear Merlin. Theodore was suddenly getting a very bad feeling about this.

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 **AN: Hope you liked it! Remember, after this chapter will be completely new material, so apologies for the unavoidable fact that you will probably have to wait awhile between updates.**

 **\- Kelly**


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